Take the Name of Jesus With You

The Lord continues to open doors for preaching and ministry in various places and churches throughout Haiti, and last week we were blessed to have another group from home to participate in the work here.

James' and Jonas' arrived last Tuesday evening, and the men started right in on Wednesday with a visit to an area hospital. They were surprised to find that the hospital was not actually in operation, as the entire staff went on strike months ago. Despite there being basically nobody there to offer medical assistance, there were still plenty of sick people filling the beds and longing for some help. It seems it was a sobering and heart-wrenching, yet blessed time of witnessing to these people. From there, they headed to preach in the streets of Port-au-Prince. Thursday morning was an early departure for the long drive to Miragoâne, where Barry preached after they finally arrived.

The women and children went along on Friday as we took some time to visit some of the other missions in the area and learn a little more about the work they are doing in Haiti. It was interesting to see the sheer volume of food and other supplies that are distributed continually to so many people in need.

We were back home again for a short rest and the men left for a Bible study in Williamson. This was at the church where Barry preached the Sunday before, where there had been a good response to the message and some young people had come forward wanting to repent. There seems to possibly be some fruit coming forth from this group!

The plan for Saturday was to head up the mountain, but rain the night before and more on the way postponed the plans. Instead, we all went and visited the little orphanage in Williamson that we've recently been working with. We had Anouce along to translate, so it was a wonderful opportunity to share with these tender hearts. James and Jonas both had a short lesson for them, encouraging and reminding them of their need for Jesus to lead their lives. That same afternoon, the men went to visit
the pastor in charge of the church and orphanage in his home. It was a meeting that allowed them to dig a little deeper into what he's about and what the needs truly are in order for those dear children to be taken care of.

Brother James sharing with the children at the orphanage

The third Sunday of the month brought us back to Titanyen, where brother James brought the morning message. He opened up Galations 5 and explained the works of the flesh in detail. He ended the message with the encouragement to be sure we are among those who are in Christ and are called up together with Him on that glorious day.

Sunday morning services at Titanyen

The mountain trip was moved to Monday, so the group loaded in the truck and ventured their way up the rocky 22 mile path to the village we typically hope to make it to.  After they arrived, the people were gathered together for a service and Jonas opened up and shared a message. Anouce was unavailable that day due to family circumstances, so Josnel, our other Haitian on the team, had his first opportunity to translate a sermon.

Since our visitors left last Tuesday, God has continued to show us that He is watching over us. As we were headed home from Port-au-Prince that same day after getting the truck worked on, we were driving down a back road when we heard a loud cracking noise. Suddenly Barry slammed on the breaks, locking up all four wheels. A large utility pole had split and was falling right for us! It crashed down, hitting the metal grill guard on the truck. There was an array of sparks and wires tangled up on the truck. Barry put it in reverse and pulled us from the entanglement. No one was hurt, we praise God!

Wednesday was Barry's first "megachurch" experience, as he and the team traveled five hours away to the southwest side of Haiti. They arrived to see that the very large building had already been filled, and people were standing outside the windows waiting for the service to begin. An estimated 2,000 people were there to hear about sin and the blessed promise that Jesus offers to be freed from it. They returned again to the church in Williamson last night for a Bible study that dug deeper into some things Barry had shared on the last time he preached there.

This morning we plan to go down the street to Pastor Oscar's church. This is the church where many of our nearby neighbors attend. We've gotten to know many of them better over the weeks, but we haven't been there for church since the Sunday Benji was there to share the main message. Lord willing, this will be a great opportunity to share what's on his heart from the fruit we have seen by living among many of these people.

We are once again thankful for the visit from home, and all the help I had from the women while they were here. It is always a blessing to have American sisters here helping with all the cleaning, laundry and cooking, and being here to fellowship. I pray you are richly blessed by your efforts. We have less than two weeks until the expected arrival of our little blessing! God is truly worthy of our praise!